Another side of San Diego Square

Your Aug. 24 article “Most unkind” by Kelly Davis is exactly that. I'm one of the majority of residents of San Diego Square who do not want an additional layer of bureaucracy in our lives and do not wish to be represented by people as arrogant as this so-called Tenants' Association.

Many of the association members only moved into the building in recent years and are unaware of how much building management has improved. When I moved in about eight years ago, the building was infested with rats, mice and cockroaches, and only when the present management team hired a good exterminator did conditions improve. But when people like Loren Baker don't report bedbug infestations, it can endanger the entire building because individual apartments are only inspected once every six months and bedbugs can spread rapidly.

As for parking, everyone who moves in is told there is no parking for residents. Those who need parking should have found a place that would accommodate their cars. I've never owned a car and I enjoy living Downtown with access to all bus and trolley routes and most amenities, like the post office, the library and a shopping mall located within walking distance.

The problem with the pool party was that they were using glass instead of paper or plastic cups for their drinks and using electricity for the projector, both of which are dangerous in the area of the pool and are therefore prohibited for safety reasons.

Recently, the discredited Tenants' Association had a meeting and didn't tell management or residents who weren't members that they had invited Congressmember Bob Filner. I went to that meeting, and Chuck Miller, one of their leaders, tried to kick me out, saying that because I wasn't a dues-paying member of their association, I didn't have a right to be there. Cooler heads prevailed and I was allowed to stay, but if Mr. Kane of the National Alliance of HUD Tenants thinks that this so-called association is open to everyone, somebody has been lying to him. They no longer even announce their meetings, to prevent anyone who disagrees with them from attending and having a voice.

San Diego Square is one of the most pleasant and best managed senior buildings in San Diego. The staff is courteous, efficient and attentive, and most of us feel fortunate to live here. Ask any of San Diego's thousands of homeless people, or hundreds of thousands of workers struggling to pay this city's high rents and still feed their families, how they'd feel about subsidized housing. I don't know of anyone, not even homeowners in affluent neighborhoods, who has never seen a single bug in their home, and many people have to pay for parking in addition to rent. As our economy teeters and government programs like HUD continue to be slashed, it is possible that many senior citizens who benefit from this program will find ourselves homeless. Most of us know how lucky we are, but some people will always find something to complain about while the rest of us are counting our blessings. They have a right to complain—the only thing they lack is a legitimate complaint.

Mark E. Smith, Downtown

Dumanis is a bad choice

Why would this city even want Bonnie Dumanis as mayor [“Editorial,” Aug. 31]? The D.A.'s office, under her command, has become corrupt and unethical, rabidly pursuing bogus convictions over real justice—except, of course, where similarly unethical lawyers or millionaire campaign donors are concerned, in which case it turns a blind eye.

Dumanis as D.A. has been accused of extorting judges by threatening to never bring cases before them unless they knuckle under to her demands, many of which are illegal and unconstitutional. Prosecutors under her direction have intimidated defendants into coerced confessions by withholding or “losing” evidence that would have led to acquittal if the matter were brought to trial.

Bonnie Dumanis does not seek justice, she puts on a show of “justice theater,” which gives people a completely false sense of security. All of this combined with her multiple flip-flops on policy issues just proves that she'd be the worst possible choice for mayor of America's Finest City.